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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-10-18 Daily Xml
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JACOBS, MR S.J.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Public Sector Management, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Minister for Government Enterprises, Minister for Gambling) (14:34): I move:

That the Legislative Council expresses its deep regret at the death of Mr Samuel Jacobs AO QC, former judge of the Supreme Court of South Australia, and places on record its appreciation of his distinguished public service.

It is with sadness that I rise to speak about the life of Samuel Joshua (Sam) Jacobs AO QC, who died on 11 October, aged 90, after a long illness. Born in Adelaide in 1920, I am advised that Samuel was a man of great intellect and character. He was educated at Scotch College and enrolled at the University of Adelaide in 1938. During his time at university, he also made his mark as an all-rounder on campus as editor of On Dit and in the intervarsity golf team. During his university years, Samuel was an active member of the intervarsity debating team, and some say that this was a foretaste of things to come.

He enlisted in July 1940 in the Second Australian Imperial Force in World War II, serving in the Middle East and the Northern Territory and rising to the rank of captain. After the interruption caused by war, he completed his legal studies and went on to begin a private law practice in 1946, developing his practice as a barrister in the ensuing years.

Samuel led a distinguished career. In 1965, he was appointed Queen's Counsel, and in 1971 he was made President of the Law Society, before being appointed a judge of the Supreme Court in 1973, a position which he held until his 70th birthday at the end of 1990—when he reached what has been called the 'age of judicial senility', or the compulsory retirement age—and left the bench.

After his 17 years of experience as a judge, he was called on to help improve judicial standards, drafting a questionnaire which was administered to his fellow judicial officers in the Australian Institute of Judicial Administration and used as the basis for the first Australian guide to judicial conduct and ethics, a practical aid to our lawmakers which was published in 2002. After his retirement, Samuel Jacobs was also appointed to look into complex issues, including the state debt and the legal and contractual issues associated with the Hindmarsh Island Bridge.

In 1982, Samuel was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for his dedicated service to law and education. He was also awarded honorary doctorates from both the University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia. Samuel obviously understood the importance of education, and from the early 1950s he was involved in voluntary work in support of education, including 32 years as a member of the council of the University of Adelaide, where he was Deputy Chancellor.

Samuel's involvement in community affairs was evidenced by his support for organisations such as the Kindergarten Union of South Australia, and the Crippled Children's Association. He also served as a director of the South Australian Gas Company. Samuel was an active freemason, and in South Australia and the Northern Territory he achieved the rank of Grandmaster of Freemasons from 1979 to 1982. I understand that he is commemorated in the North Terrace Freemasons Hall, where two large function rooms were named after him in September 2010. In recognition of his service to both law and the community, Justice Jacobs became an Officer of the Order of Australia in the Queen's Birthday Honours List in 1982. He was also awarded a Centenary Medal in 2001.

I understand Samuel had a great love for Adelaide. He recognised the spacious green environment and unique attractions that South Australia had to offer, and he was known to express his appreciation of its relaxed lifestyle. While some may say South Australia is too small, Samuel could also see the opportunities for commercial activity this state presented. Samuel Jacobs is survived by his two sisters, three sons, one daughter, five grandchildren and three great-grandsons. His wife Mary died in 2007. On behalf of us all, I extend our condolences.

The Hon. S.G. WADE (14:40): As shadow attorney-general and on behalf of the Liberal opposition I rise to support the condolence motion upon the death of the Hon. Sam Jacobs AO QC. The Hon. Samuel Jacobs died on 11 October at the age of 91. The Hon. Sam Jacobs was respected for his perspectiveness, his tolerance, his commitment to justice and his sense of humour—characteristics which defined him over 17 years as a Supreme Court judge.

The Hon. Samuel Jacobs served in three ways. First, he served his country in war. Having started studying law in the late 1930s, these studies were deferred when he went to war in 1940. On his return he was able to take up a training contract which he had entered into before he went to war and, as such, he became a judge's associate with credits for his service. Some years before that the Law Society had reached an agreement with the state government to administer a legal assistance scheme. The scheme was operating under the Poor Persons Legal Assistance Act and was not replaced until the Legal Services Commission was established in 1979.

The Hon. Sam Jacobs was one of the early practitioners to work under this scheme and he joked occasionally that members would receive assignments in the mail without any warning. However, he saw himself as a volunteer and he served to support the less fortunate members of the community. He was also a member of the firm Browne Rymill and Stevens, and in 1965 was appointed as a QC.

From 1973 until 1990 he served as a Supreme Court judge. It is interesting, so soon after the condolence motion for Justice Mullighan (who served as Commissioner in the Commission of Inquiry into Children in State Care), that the Hon. Samuel Jacobs—following compulsory retirement at the end of 1990—served as the Commissioner in the Royal Commission into the State Bank of South Australia from 1991 to 1993. Samuel Jacobs did this state a great service by exposing the mismanagement of the South Australian Bannon Labor government. Highlighting the toxic assets of the State Bank, he cautioned governments on what has been seen as a worldwide problem in relation to toxic assets.

In recognition of his service to both the law and the community, Justice Jacobs became an Officer of the Order of Australia in the Queen's Birthday Honours List in 1982, and was awarded a Centenary Medal in 2001. The Hon. Samuel Jacobs lost his much-loved wife, Mary, in 2007 and is survived by four children, five grandchildren, three great-grandsons and two sisters.

On behalf of the opposition, I express my condolences to his family and thank them on our behalf for the tireless work of the Hon. Samuel Jacobs—to both the community and the state.

Motion carried by members standing in their places in silence.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Public Sector Management, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Minister for Government Enterprises, Minister for Gambling) (14:44): I move:

That as a mark of respect to their memories, the sitting of the council be suspended.

Motion carried.


[Sitting suspended from 14:44 to 15:06]


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